PETALING JAYA: A renewed Lee Zii Jia will look to open his World Championships campaign in Paris on a positive note today, having put his past mental health struggles behind him.
The 27-year-old faces a tricky first-round test against South Korea’s Jeon Hyeok-jin, an opponent he has beaten in three of their four previous encounters.
The world meet marks Zii Jia’s first tournament appearance in five months, since a disappointing first-round exit at the All-England in March following a prolonged ankle injury.
It was during that period on the sidelines that he battled stress and depression, even posting disturbing photos on social media.
Former great Datuk Rashid Sidek is relieved to see the former national No. 1 back on his feet and encouraged him not to be too hard on himself.
“It’s good to see Zii Jia come back after a long time. He should not worry too much about his performance in Paris,” said Rashid.
“Regardless of the outcome in Paris, Zii Jia should keep a positive mindset and just enjoy his badminton again.
Rashid also urged Zii Jia to ignore negative comments from netizens.
“Sometimes, players are scared to lose. Of course top players always want to play well,” said Rashid.
“Zii Jia should not worry about netizens criticising him. He should not read the negative comments.
“Just switch off social media and divert his mind to other things. When I was a player, I will not read the news after I lose matches and Zii Jia should do the same.
As for Zii Jia, he is just ready to put the dark episode behind him and move on.
“I know it’s not normal to be out for five months,” said Zii Jia in an interview with the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
“I’ve been in a situation that I wanted to stop playing because of all these injuries, all these things that bothered me. I’ve had ups and downs previously, but never had to deal with injuries.
“When it happened (the injury), I was quite shocked, and I was clueless. I didn’t know what I should do and how I should deal with this problem.
“How am I going to perform when I come back? Am I still at the top level, or am I struggling with my own performance?
“It was quite stressful but I think the important thing is that I’m now ready and I’m here.”
And the good news is that Zii Jia is injury-free.
“I can say definitely that my ankle does not give me pain anymore. I can play in training. Of course, it’s a different situation than in a tournament. “So that’s why I’m here, it’s like a test for me,” added Zii Jia.
